SportJudo

About Judo

Judo a relatively modern martial art and one with a strong ethical code and guiding philosophy. In a display of physical strength and tactical positioning, the sport pits two athletes against each other in a contest to control and dictate the movements of the opponent.

It originally emerged from jujitsu as a martial art and was further developed as a competitive sport by Jigaro Kano, a Japanese educationalist, sport activist, and philosopher. Combatants – known as judokas – aim to either throw an opponent to the floor, subdue them with a pin, or force the opponent to submit with a choke or arm lock.

Judo made its Olympic debut, for men, in Tokyo in 1964 with three specific weight categories, plus an open category for competitors of any weight. After missing Mexico City 1968, the sport returned permanently to the Olympic program in Munich in 1972.

Women’s judo became an Olympic sport at Barcelona 1992, after being a demonstration event at Seoul 1988.